Washing-drying machine

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure provides a washing-drying machine. The washing-drying machine includes: a cabinet; an inner drum rotatably disposed in the cabinet and defines an accommodating cavity therein, in which the inner drum has an air outlet communicated with the accommodating cavity and a condensation air channel disposed in a bottom wall thereof, the condensation air channel is communicated with the accommodating cavity and the air outlet respectively; and a heat exchanger disposed in the cabinet and configured to exchange heat with wet air in the condensation air channel.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority and benefits of Chinese PatentApplication No. 201520998733.9, filed with State Intellectual PropertyOffice on Dec. 4, 2015, and Chinese Patent Application No.201510885611.3, filed with State Intellectual Property Office on Dec. 4,2015. Each of the aforementioned applications is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a technical field of laundry machine,especially to a washing-drying machine.

BACKGROUND

A drying-condensing system of the front-loading washing-drying machinein the art is designed with an external condensation air channel, inwhich a condenser is fixed to the outside of the rear tub by a bolt, theflowing air enters the condensation air channel through air vents in theback of the rear tub, and then a ventilation cycle is generated throughother components, thus realizing the function of drying clothes. Butwith this kind of design, the components are large in amount and astructure of the external condensation air channel occupies a relativelylarge space, and when designing the structure, the condenser occupiesthe position where a stiffener on the back of the rear tub is located,thus making the stiffener on the back of the rear tub complicated indesign.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure aims to solve one of the technical problems inthe related art to at least some extent. Accordingly, the presentdisclosure provides a washing-drying machine which has a simple andcompact structure, a high utilization ratio of space, a small amount ofcomponents and a low cost.

The washing-drying machine according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure includes: a cabinet; an inner drum rotatably disposed in thecabinet and defines an accommodating cavity therein, in which the innerdrum has an air outlet communicated with the accommodating cavity and acondensation air channel disposed in a bottom wall thereof, thecondensation air channel is communicated with the accommodating cavityand the air outlet respectively; and a heat exchanger disposed in thecabinet and configured to exchange heat with wet air in the condensationair channel.

In the washing-drying machine according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure, by providing the condensation air channel in the bottom wallof the inner drum 10, a space occupation of a partial assembling of thewashing-drying machine is reduced, a utilization ratio of space in thecabinet is improved considerably, the amount of components of the dryingsystem of the washing-drying machine is decreased and thus acorresponding cost is reduced. Compared with a washing-drying machine inthe related art, the washing-drying machine according to embodiments ofthe present disclosure does not need an external condensation airchannel any more, and thus has a simple and compact structure and a highproduction efficiency.

In addition, the washing-drying machine according to embodiments of thepresent disclosure may have the following additional technical features.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the washing-dryingmachine further includes an air channel cover plate, and the air channelcover plate is connected with the bottom wall of the inner drum todefine the condensation air channel.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the bottom wall ofthe inner drum is provided with a relief groove protruding outwardsalong an axial direction of the inner drum, the relief groove iscommunicated with the air outlet, and the air channel cover plate isfitted with the relief groove to define the condensation air channel.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the condensationair channel has an air channel inlet communicated with the accommodatingcavity and the condensation air channel respectively.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the air channelinlet is formed at an end of the condensation air channel.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a projected areaof the air channel cover plate on a plane vertical to the axialdirection of the inner drum is smaller than a projected area of therelief groove on the plane, so as to define the air channel inlet.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the air channelcover plate is connected with the inner drum by a bolt.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the air channelcover plate is connected with the inner drum adhesively.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the air channelcover plate is flush with the bottom wall of the inner drum.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the relief grooveis formed integrally when the inner drum is molded.

Additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will begiven in part in the following descriptions, become apparent in partfrom the following descriptions, or be learned from the practice of thepresent disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an inner drum and an air channel coverplate of a washing-drying machine according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, in which the inner drum and the air channel coverplate are assembled;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the structure shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of the structure shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a rear view of the structure shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 5 is a side view of the structure shown in FIG. 1;

REFERENCE NUMERALS

inner drum 10; accommodating cavity 11; air outlet 12; relief groove 13;air channel inlet 14; air channel cover plate 20.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail.Examples of the embodiments are shown in the drawings. The embodimentsdescribed herein with reference to drawings are explanatory, and used togenerally understand the present disclosure, and shall not be construedto limit the present disclosure.

In the following, a washing-drying machine according to embodiments ofthe present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1-5.

As shown in FIG. 1, the washing-drying machine according to embodimentsof the present disclosure includes a cabinet (not shown), an inner drum10 and a heat exchanger (not shown). Specifically, the inner drum 10 isrotatably disposed in the cabinet and has an accommodating cavity 11therein, in which the inner drum 10 has an air outlet 12 communicatedwith the accommodating cavity 11 and also has a condensation air channeldisposed in a bottom wall thereof. The condensation air channel iscommunicated with the accommodating cavity 11 and the air outlet 12respectively, and the heat exchanger is disposed in the cabinet andconfigured to exchange heat with wet air in the condensation airchannel.

In other words, the washing-drying machine mainly includes the cabinet,an outer tub (not shown), the inner drum 10 and the heat exchanger. Thecabinet extends along a vertical direction, the outer tub is disposedfixedly in the cabinet, and the inner drum 10 is rotatably disposed inthe outer tub, in which a gap is formed between an externalcircumferential wall of the inner drum 10 and an internalcircumferential wall of the outer tub. The inner drum 10 has theaccommodating cavity 11 configured to accommodate clothes therein andalso has an air inlet (not shown) and the air outlet 12 communicatedwith the accommodating cavity 11 respectively.

Optionally, the inner drum 10 and the outer tub extend along a front andrear direction respectively and disposed coaxially. The bottom wall ofthe inner drum 10 is provided with the condensation air channel, thecondensation air channel is communicated with the accommodating cavity11 and the air outlet 12 respectively, and the heat exchanger may bedisposed adjacent to the condensation air channel. When a drying programof the washing-drying machine starts running, a drying system guideshigh-temperature air into the accommodating cavity 11 through the airinlet so as to dry the clothes in the accommodating cavity 11. Then, wetair of the clothes is brought into the condensation air channel, and theheat exchanger condenses the wet air in the condensation air channel.Consequently, a condensed water is discharged out of the inner drum 10,and relatively dry air is obtained, discharged out of the air outlet 12and then enters subsequent components, and so on.

Thus, in the washing-drying machine according to embodiments of thepresent disclosure, by providing the condensation air channel in thebottom wall of the inner drum 10, a space occupation of a partialassembling of the washing-drying machine is reduced, a utilization ratioof space in the cabinet is improved considerably, the amount ofcomponents of the drying system of the washing-drying machine isdecreased and thus a corresponding cost is reduced. Compared with awashing-drying machine in the related art, the washing-drying machineaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure does not need anexternal condensation air channel any more, and thus has a simple andcompact structure and a high production efficiency.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the washing-dryingmachine further includes an air channel cover plate 20, and the airchannel cover plate 20 is connected with the bottom wall of the innerdrum 10 to define the condensation air channel. Optionally, the airchannel cover plate 20 may be detachably connected or fixedly connectedwith the bottom wall of the inner drum 10. The air channel cover plate20 and the inner drum 10 define the condensation air channeltherebetween, and the condensation air channel is communicated with theair outlet 12 and the accommodating cavity 11 respectively. Accordingly,the condensation air channel is defined by the bottom wall of the innerdrum 10 and the air channel cover plate 20, which provides a simple andcompact structure, needs a small amount of components, and thusfacilitates assembling and disassembling.

As shown in FIG. 2, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the bottom wall of the inner drum 10 is provided with anrelief groove 13 protruding outwards along an axial direction of theinner drum 10, the relief groove 13 is communicated with the air outlet12, and the air channel cover plate 20 is fitted with the relief groove13 to define the condensation air channel.

Specifically, at least a part of the bottom wall of the inner drum 10extends backwards along the axial direction of the inner drum 10 (i.e.the front and rear direction shown in FIG. 2) so as to form the reliefgroove 13 in the bottom wall of the inner drum 10. The relief groove 13is recessed downwards relative to an inner surface of the bottom wall ofthe inner drum 10 and is communicated with the accommodating cavity 11and the air outlet 12 respectively. That is, a side (a front side shownin FIG. 2) of the relief groove 13 is open, an inner wall of the reliefgroove 13 is provided with the air outlet 12, and the air channel coverplate 20 is mounted on the bottom wall of the inner drum 10 andconnected with the bottom wall of the inner drum 10 to enclose at leasta part of an opening of the relief groove 13, thus defining thecondensation air channel. Optionally, a projected shape of the airchannel cover plate 20 on a plane vertical to the axial direction of theinner drum 10 is substantially the same with a projected shape of therelief groove 13 on the plane vertical to the axial direction of theinner drum 10.

Accordingly, the relief groove 13 may be formed integrally in the bottomwall of the inner drum 10 when the inner drum 10 is molded, whichprovides a simple manufacturing procedure and a convenient molding, andthen the air channel cover plate 20 may be directly mounted to thebottom wall of the inner drum 10 to form the condensation air channel,so that a small amount of components are needed, thus resulting in a lowcost, a simple operation and a high assembly efficiency.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the condensationair channel has an air channel inlet 14, and the air channel inlet 14 iscommunicated with the accommodating cavity 11 and the condensation airchannel respectively, i.e. the air channel inlet 14 communicates theaccommodating cavity 11 with the condensation air channel. For example,an outer edge of the air channel cover plate 20 is connected with thebottom wall of the inner drum 10, and the air channel cover plate 20 isprovided with the air channel inlet 14 communicated with theaccommodating cavity 11, so as to facilitate guiding the wet air in theaccommodating cavity 11 of the inner drum 10 to the condensation airchannel. Of course, the present disclosure is not limited to this, i.e.,the air channel inlet 14 may be provided in the air channel cover plate20 or defined by the outer edge of the air channel cover plate 20 andthe bottom wall of the inner drum 10.

When the drying program of the washing-drying machine starts running,the drying system guides the high-temperature air into the accommodatingcavity 11 through the air inlet so as to dry the clothes in theaccommodating cavity 11, then the wet air of the clothes is brought intothe condensation air channel through the air channel inlet 14, and theheat exchanger condenses the wet air in the condensation air channel.The condensed water is discharged out of the inner drum 10, and therelatively dry air is obtained and discharged out of the air outlet 12.

Preferably, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theair channel inlet is formed at an end of the condensation air channel.Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, a length direction of the reliefgroove 13 extends along a circumferential direction of the bottom wallof the inner drum 10, i.e. an outer contour line of the relief groove 13is configured to have an arc shape. Correspondingly, an outer contourline of the air channel cover plate 20 is also configured to have an arcshape and a length of the air channel cover plate 20 in thecircumferential direction of the bottom wall of the inner drum 10 issmaller than a length of the relief groove 13. A first end of the airchannel cover plate 20 is connected with the bottom wall of the innerdrum 10 to enclose a side of the opening of the relief groove 13, and asecond end of the air channel cover plate 20 and the bottom wall of theinner drum 10 define the air channel inlet 14. The air channel inlet 14and the air outlet 12 are located at two ends of the condensation airchannel respectively.

Accordingly, by providing the air channel inlet 14 at the end of thecondensation air channel, a flowing time of the wet air in thecondensation air channel is increased, and thus the heat-exchange timeof the heat exchanger and the wet air is prolonged, so that the wet airis condensed sufficiently, the heat exchange effect is improved, and thedrying efficiency of the washing-drying machine is further enhanced.

As shown in FIG. 3, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, a projected area of the air channel cover plate 20 on aplane vertical to the axial direction of the inner drum 10 is smallerthan a projected area of the relief groove 13 on the plane so as todefine the air channel inlet. Accordingly, the inner drum 10 and the airchannel cover plate 20 of the washing-drying machine define thecondensation air channel and the air channel inlet 14 through astructural fit therebetween, which thus provides the simple and compactstructure, the convenient assembling and disassembling, the easymanufacturing and the low cost.

In some specific embodiments of the present disclosure, the air channelcover plate 20 is connected with the inner drum 10 by a bolt.Specifically, the air channel cover plate 20 is provided with aplurality of threaded holes arranged in a circumferential direction ofthe air channel cover plate 20 and spaced apart from one another, whichthus can guarantee the air channel cover plate 20 to be fixedlyconnected with the bottom wall of the inner drum 10, and ensure thesealing property of the condensation air channel as well.Correspondingly, multiple bolts are provided and fitted in the pluralityof threaded holes respectively. It is to be noted that, the sealingproperty of the condensation air channel is a relative term, i.e. thecondensation air channel has the sealing property in other positionsexpect where the air channel inlet 14 and the air outlet 12 are.Accordingly, the air channel cover plate 20 is connected with the innerdrum 10 by the bolts, thus causing the convenient assembling anddisassembling and the easy repair thereof.

In some other specific embodiments of the present disclosure, the airchannel cover plate 20 is connected with the inner drum 10 adhesively.Thus, the outer edge of the air channel cover plate 20 is closely fittedwith the bottom wall of the inner drum 10, which can guarantee a greatsealing property of the condensation air channel, therefore improvingthe heat exchange effect on the wet air and further increasing thedrying efficiency of the washing-drying machine.

Preferably, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theair channel cover plate 20 is flush with the bottom wall of the innerdrum 10. In other words, when the air channel cover plate 20 isassembled together with the inner drum 10, a side of the air channelcover plate 20 facing towards an opening of the inner drum 10 is flushwith the inner surface of the bottom wall of the inner drum 10, so thatthe inner surface of the bottom wall of the inner drum 10 is beautifuland smooth, and also the outer edge of the air channel cover plate 20 isprevented from lacerating clothes, thus providing a good userexperience.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, therelief groove 13 is formed integrally when the inner drum 10 is molded.For example, the relief groove 13 may be formed in the bottom wall ofthe inner drum 10 when the inner drum 10 is molded by injection molding.Accordingly, the integrally formed structure guarantees the structuralstability and the performance stability of the washing-drying machine,and also is convenient to mold and easy to manufacture, so thatredundant assembling components and connection procedures are omitted,thus improving the assembling efficiency of the washing-drying machineconsiderably and ensuring the connection reliability of the inner drum10. Furthermore, the integrally formed structure has high overallstrength and stability along with a long service life, and is moreconvenient to assemble.

Other configurations and operations of the washing-drying machineaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure are known for thoseskilled in the art, and thus will not be described in detail herein.

In the specification, it is to be understood that terms such as“central,” “longitudinal,” “lateral,” “length,” “width,” “thickness,”“upper,” “lower,” “front,” “rear,” “left,” “right,” “vertical,”“horizontal,” “top,” “bottom,” “inner,” “outer,” “clockwise,”“counterclockwise,” “an axial direction,” “a radical direction,” and “acircumferential direction,” should be construed to refer to theorientation as then described or as shown in the drawings underdiscussion. These relative terms are for convenience of description anddo not require that the present disclosure be constructed or operated ina particular orientation.

In addition, terms such as “first” and “second” are used herein forpurposes of description and are not intended to indicate or implyrelative importance or significance or to imply the number of indicatedtechnical features. Thus, the feature defined with “first” and “second”may comprise one or more of this feature. In the description of thepresent disclosure, “a plurality of” means two or more than two, unlessspecified otherwise.

In the present disclosure, unless specified or limited otherwise, theterms “mounted,” “connected,” “coupled,” “fixed” and the like are usedbroadly, and may be, for example, fixed connections, detachableconnections, or integral connections; may also be mechanical orelectrical connections or be communicated with each other; may also bedirect connections or indirect connections via intervening structures;may also be inner communications or interaction of two elements, whichcan be understood by those skilled in the art according to specificsituations.

In the present disclosure, unless specified or limited otherwise, astructure in which a first feature is “on” or “below” a second featuremay include an embodiment in which the first feature is in directcontact with the second feature, and may also include an embodiment inwhich the first feature and the second feature are not in direct contactwith each other, but are contacted via an intervening structures.Furthermore, a first feature “on,” “above,” or “on top of” a secondfeature may include an embodiment in which the first feature is right orobliquely “on,” “above,” or “on top of” the second feature, or justmeans that the first feature is at a height higher than that of thesecond feature; while a first feature “below,” “under,” or “on bottomof” a second feature may include an embodiment in which the firstfeature is right or obliquely “below,” “under,” or “on bottom of” thesecond feature, or just means that the first feature is at a heightlower than that of the second feature.

Reference throughout this specification to “an embodiment,” “someembodiments,” “an example,” “a specific example,” or “some examples,”means that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristicdescribed in connection with the embodiment or example is included in atleast one embodiment or example of the present disclosure. Thus, theappearances of the phrases in various places throughout thisspecification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment orexample of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the particular features,structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in anysuitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. Furthermore,different embodiments or examples in thus specification can be jointedand combined by those skilled in the art without mutual contradiction.

Although embodiments have been shown and described, it would beappreciated that the embodiments above are explanatory and cannot beconstrued to limit the present disclosure, and changes, alternatives,transformation and modifications to the embodiments above can be made bythose skilled in the art in the scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A washing-drying machine, comprising: a cabinet;an inner drum rotatably disposed in the cabinet and defines anaccommodating cavity therein, wherein the inner drum has an air outletcommunicated with the accommodating cavity and a condensation airchannel disposed in a bottom wall thereof, the condensation air channelis communicated with the accommodating cavity and the air outletrespectively; and a heat exchanger disposed in the cabinet andconfigured to exchange heat with wet air in the condensation airchannel.
 2. The washing-drying machine according to claim 1, furthercomprising an air channel cover plate, wherein the air channel coverplate is connected with the bottom wall of the inner drum to define thecondensation air channel.
 3. The washing-drying machine according toclaim 2, wherein the bottom wall of the inner drum is provided with arelief groove protruding outwards along an axial direction of the innerdrum, the relief groove is communicated with the air outlet, and the airchannel cover plate is fitted with the relief groove to define thecondensation air channel.
 4. The washing-drying machine according toclaim 3, wherein the condensation air channel has an air channel inletcommunicated with the accommodating cavity and the condensation airchannel respectively.
 5. The washing-drying machine according to claim4, wherein the air channel inlet is formed at an end of the condensationair channel.
 6. The washing-drying machine according to claim 5, whereina projected area of the air channel cover plate on a plane vertical tothe axial direction of the inner drum is smaller than a projected areaof the relief groove on the plane, so as to define the air channelinlet.
 7. The washing-drying machine according to claim 2, wherein theair channel cover plate is connected with the inner drum by a bolt. 8.The washing-drying machine according to claim 2, wherein the air channelcover plate is connected with the inner drum adhesively.
 9. Thewashing-drying machine according to claim 2, wherein the air channelcover plate is flush with the bottom wall of the inner drum.
 10. Thewashing-drying machine according to claim 3, wherein the relief grooveis formed integrally when the inner drum is molded.